Still, a pump fake by the 6-foot-3 forward — from NBA range with under seven minutes to go — didn’t even draw a raised hand from an Acalanes defender.

Big mistake.

Lewis took on the challenge and let it fly, converting his career-high fifth and final 3-pointer of the afternoon.

The senior finished with a double-double — 27 points, 10 rebounds — and the Dragons held off Acalanes for a thrilling 55-51 win on Saturday in the NorCal Division III title game at Stockton Arena.

“My first (3-pointer) went in, so I didn’t stop shooting,” said Lewis, whose five 3-pointers tied the single-game record for 3s in a NorCal Division III championship game set by Seaside’s Tito Addison in 1992. “My teammates kept finding me, and I just kept knocking them down.”

The win avenges O’Dowd’s 17-point loss to the Dons in the North Coast Section championship game on March 2. It also sends the Dragons (26-6) to their first state title game since 2004.

“This is my first year coming this far, and it feels great,” Lewis said.The Dragons will play Artesia of Lakewood at 2:45 p.m. on Saturday at Arco Arena in Sacramento for the Division III state title. Artesia advanced with a 79-53 win over La Canada in the SoCal Division III title game.

“A lot of people underestimate us,” Lewis said. “(Artesia) is a very good team, No.1 in the nation, but any team can be beaten.”

The Dragons had to halt a last-ditch effort by the Dons for their record-tying fifth NorCal title. Acalanes, a dismal 4-for-22 from 3-point range — hit two 3s in the final half-minute to pull within two points with 13.6 seconds left.

What happened next made Lewis’ heart skip a beat. The Dragons inbounded the ball to Daniel Koches, who stepped out of bounds as he was dribbling up court. That gave the ball back to the Dons with 11.6 left, trailing 53-51.

“I got really scared,” Lewis admitted.

The Dons got the ball into the hands of their star forward Joey Anderson. The junior went straight to the rim, but missed the contested layup, and Lewis grabbed the rebound to secure the win.

“I thought it was going in, but it just didn’t fall,” said Anderson, who finished with 16 points. “We just weren’t knocking down the shots we usually do. We hit some key 3s at the end, but it just wasn’t enough.”

The game was close all the way. The biggest lead for either school was six points by the Dragons with under two minutes left. The game had 18 lead changes and was tied six times.

Bishop O’Dowd changed its look on defense from the teams’ previous meeting. The Dragons played a box-and-one this time, having a guard front Acalanes big man Jordan Fillmore. It worked perfectly, as the 6-foot-8 Fillmore wasn’t a factor with just three shots overall.

“Kenny (Chinn) and Dejon (Smith) did a tremendous job of denying his touches and making sure he didn’t have any open looks,” Vierra said. “We had worked on a triangle-and-two defense, but I didn’t think the kids bought into it. So we went with our zone and took one man and put him on Jordan.”

Jordan, who scored 13 points in the NCS title game against O’Dowd, finished with just two points. Brooks Baker led the Dons with 17 points.

O’Dowd sophomore Justin Brue had a strong fourth quarter, scoring eight of his 13 points. The 6-foot-4 forward had a key putback with 2:49 left to give O’Dowd a 47-41 lead.

“Brue really picked up the slack,” Lewis said.

The Dons’ biggest lead was early in the first quarter, 10-5, after a layup by Anderson. It was a seesaw battle from there. The score was tied at 20 at halftime.

O’Dowd pulled away early in the fourth quarter with a highlight-reel dunk by Lewis. Koches drove and missed a layup, but Lewis grabbed the board and slammed it home as part of a 7-4 run to open the period.